Extreme philopatry and genetic diversification at unprecedented scales in a seabird

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Danckwerts, Daniel, K. | Humeau, Laurence | Pinet, Patrick | Mcquaid, Christopher, D. | Le Corre, Matthieu

Edité par CCSD ; Nature Publishing Group -

International audience. Effective conservation requires maintenance of the processes underlying species divergence, as well as understanding species' responses to episodic disturbances and long-term change. We explored genetic population structure at a previously unrecognized spatial scale in seabirds, focusing on fine-scale isolation between colonies, and identified two distinct genetic clusters of Barau's Petrels (Pterodroma baraui) on Réunion Island (Indian Ocean) corresponding to the sampled breeding colonies separated by 5 km. This unexpected result was supported by long-term banding and was clearly linked to the species' extreme philopatric tendencies, emphasizing the importance of philopatry as an intrinsic barrier to gene flow. This implies that loss of a single colony could result in the loss of genetic variation, impairing the species' ability to adapt to threats in the long term. We anticipate that these findings will have a pivotal influence on seabird research and population management, focusing attention below the species level of taxonomic organization.

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